Chicago State hires former Bears, Notre Dame DT Chris Zorich as AD

8 Oct 1995: Defensive lineman Chris Zorich of the Bears looks on during a game against the Carolina Panthers at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois. The Bears won the game, 31-27. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Daniel /Allsport

Former Bears and Notre Dame defensive tackle Chris Zorich has been hired as athletic director at Chicago State.

A Chicago product who was on Notre Dame’s 1988 national championship team and played for the Bears from 1991-96, Zorich replaces interim AD Tracy Dildy. The school says he will start work on May 8.

The 49-year-old Zorich joins a school that has been hit hard by budget problems in recent years and is looking for two new basketball coaches. Chicago State let Dildy go following a 3-29 season. The school also parted with women’s coach Angela Jackson, whose program endured a Division I record 59-game losing streak before beating Utah Valley on Feb. 8. Zorich most recently was AD at Prairie State, a community college in Chicago Heights.

Zorich ran into financial difficulties after his playing career. He was sentenced in 2013 to three years of probation following a federal tax evasion conviction.